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I keep tackle and baits that are not actually on the boat on peg boards in the garage. Early this fall I came across a hundred count package of Mann's Jelly Worms, purple. I bought those worms at the original LL Bean in Maine sometime in the 60s when Bean was still an outdoorsman's paradise, before it became a jet-set hangout--but I digress. Back in those years--when most of you guys were still crappin yaller--purple was THE color. I decided to give them a try. 1/4 oz weight, 4/0 hook, Texas rig and the fish went nuts for them all this fall. So you oldsters, look thru your old stuff and give some of it a try. You just might be surprised.

For most of my fishing life I used foot controled. About 10 years ago switched to hand and like it much better--although it can be pesky in the wind.

I once toured the Champion spark plug factory where they run various engines night and day untill they just give up. They claimed a Johnson [Evinrude] would outlast a Merc x 3. However this was 30 if not 40 years ago. As I surf the web I see too many reports of the Etec overheating and burning out--and Rude will find a way out of paying if they can.

Anybody have any experience with the new wireless trolling motors?

Had a 50 on my Tracker which was rated at 35. Uses much more fuel than a prop. Terrible low speed turning. If you're not river running, don't do it.

I have never found a use for flipping. Pitching is a staple. I cast and pitch with the rod in the left hand and reel in with the right. I like a 6'6" medium pitching rod because sometimes I want the rod tip right at my feet for power pitches. Short casting is also possible if you want to use a shorter rod, say 5 or 5 1/2'.

I belong to the club that thinks color doesn't matter too much but if I had to pick a favorite I would pick white. White? It has a couple of things going for it. Not too many use it and, where applicable, its easy to see. I was fishing with a buddy [best friends since Navy days in the 70s] on Champlain. He maintained color mattered a lot and I took the other view. He had a dozen or so 4" Senkos of various colors and I put them to work. Caught fish on all except one. Same buddy. Pachaug Pond, Ct. sometime in the 70s. Miserable hot summer day. He's fishing with a small white flatfish and making me look like an idiot. Flatfish were a going bait in the 70s and I had plenty but no white. That's when I started adding white to my arsenal. I fish white in plastics, particularly Senkos. In cranks I am really fond of a bone white Wiggle Wart with a splash of orange at the throat. Another good one for me is the DD22 in lavender shad. Not white but very light. At night my hawg buster, contrary to conventional wisdom, is a chrome flatfish. And then there is the ubiquitous spinnerbait in the ubiquitous chartreuse. This thing is in every bassers arsenal and just may catch more fish than anything swimming. Nothing in nature matches this obnoxious color. What's up with that?

For fish over 5 a chrome flatfish after dark. And that's in Northern climes where big fish aren't common.

I learned bass fishing from my ex father-in-law back in Maine sometime in the 60s [yeah, I'm an old fart]. Reared in the Pacific NW on creek [or crik as we call it in the NW] trout, bassin was a wonderful revelation. I still have a place in my heart for a fast flowing stream but creaky old bones are not made for crawling in and out of canyons. Water in So Oregon is a somewhat rare commodity and vegetation even more so. Lakes for the most part are reservoirs so we fish rocks, rocky bluffs, rocks, rock piles and rocks. One reservoir has abundant willows at each end at full pool. I have an ancient 16' 9" Tracker, '88 I think, which is handy because anything under 17' doesn't have to have a trailer license in Oregon. For 17 years I sported a Yamaha 50 jet because I did a bit of steelhead and salmon fishing in the Rogue River. I've given that up and 2 or 3 years ago put on a Yamaha 60 prop. This is a terrific sight and I've already picked up a few pointers. I'm really interested in what you folks have to say--especially if its about rocks.

I always run it out behind the boat after respooling. Takes the excitement out of the thing.

I use it for certain application where I need to see line movement. I've tried many of the new lines and I guess I'm just a mono guy. My "go to" line is Stren #10 MagnaThin, moss green. I don't know about fish eyes but to people eyes it is all but invisable.

I agree that your reel must be properly set up and practice practice. You'll love it when you've mastered it. I've used one more years than I can count and still manage to thro a rats nest now and then. Especially into the wind.

Medford, Or. here.

My #1 big fish producer at night is a chrome flatfish. I'm also fond of the Jitterbug.

Don't know the name of the lake but it was the St. Lawrence between Montreal and Cornwall. Recent tourny. 5 SM 30.35. 5 SM at 27 lbs weren't in the money. Big fish SM 7.15.

White. Contrary to conventional wisdom, my best night time producer for fish ove 5 lbs is a chrome flatfish.

Many will sneer at this. It is necessarily delivered on a spinning rod and requires a line you can see. I use Stren Fluorescent Blue with a 4/0 off-set shank hook. Pinch a white 5" Senko in half and texas rig the half. Thro it out. Don't jerk. Don't twitch. Just let it be on a slack line. It is absolutely deadly on SM.

14" and up use car tires. They are better than trailer tires. I've been using them 40 plus years and while I've worn some out I've yet to blow one.